


Acceptance

by unlockthelore



Series: Peace Is A Journey [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Dialogue Heavy, Established Relationship, Gen, Introspection, Light Angst, Post-Canon, Short & Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:00:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27046867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unlockthelore/pseuds/unlockthelore
Summary: On the beginnings of a journey, Aang and Zuko have a small talk which leads to rehashing a revelation.
Relationships: Aang & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Peace Is A Journey [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1890979
Comments: 6
Kudos: 24





	Acceptance

**Acceptance**

In spite of his ties to the Water Tribe and of his past lives as a water bender, Aang felt uneasy on a boat. 

It could have been because several of the kidnapping attempts or murder attempts were done while at sea. Although, he could still smell the smoldering metal of warships surrounded by charred earth when he closed his eyes, dismissing the explanation promptly. 

Wherever the discomfort came from — it was rigidly set within his memories. Out of the behest of the Southern Water Tribesmen, they set sail with one of their boats on a moonlit night. When the winds died, Aang bent air against the ship’s sails, careful not to disturb the sea. Circular motions spun currents around his fingertips like thread and manifested in a spherical tunnel filling the sails til they were fit to burst. 

Water creaked along the ship’s hull as the sea rocked the vessel to the command of the tide and its moon. Aang wandered to the ship’s bow and watched as the yellow lantern swayed on the chill salty breeze. His hand brushed against the light brown trimming. It would be awhile yet before they found their destination but he was never one to be unprepared. Heart thudding heavily, Aang looked to the horizon and lamented the last of the glaciers drifting past them revealing naught else but open sea.

It wouldn’t be long now and he hardly knew how he would face them all. Words rolled about in mind were cast aside and lost as he stared past the ship’s side toward the ocean depths. 

Aang felt the encroaching presence at his back as he leant against the railing, arms folded and pressed to the wood’s smooth varnish. “Couldn’t sleep?”

The unease twisting throughout his body seemed to be voiced in Zuko’s glum tone, a throat-scratching scoff being the firebender’s only response. Aang thought of Sokka below deck working furiously on the accounts of their ventures. Quick strokes of his brush and mumbling under his breath by the yellow glow of lamplight. Undoubtedly what roused Zuko from his restless sleep considering how many times Sokka bid Zuko to rekindle the light once it began to dim. 

With little fanfare, Zuko shouldered his way to Aang’s side and turned his back, leaning against the bow’s rail. His dark hair fluttered and whipped every which way as he tipped his head back, seeming to enjoy the breeze. Aang smiled. Without the crease in his brow or the tension to his shoulders, Zuko was the picture of serenity. His seemingly permanent scowl was just a side-effect of years without smiling. Something easily rectified. 

While Aang thought of a way to fill the silence between them with a trick or question or two, he couldn’t help but think about all of the times the two of them met on a ship’s bow. Or their first meeting in fact. When he found himself confused that the so-called villain after him was only a few years older than him. 

“When you said I was just a teenager…” Zuko murmured, his voice distant and softer than Aang was accustomed to, surprising him with its lightness amidst the sea’s noise. “I didn’t think about it much at the time.”

Aang raised a brow then inclined his head, a hum buzzed in his throat. Silver light shone in Zuko’s eyes and Aang glanced over his shoulder at the full moon bearing down upon them. Was Yue looking down upon them, he wondered. Shining her light so that they could find their way to those who were lost? 

“So,” Aang mumbled as the silence dragged on longer than he was comfortable with. “What has you thinking about it now? The  _ you’re just a teenager _ thing.”

Zuko sniffed, rubbing a hand down the side of his face, then leaning back on his elbows. “You’re just a kid,” he uttered. “I was thinking this must be hard on you.”

Bewildered, Aang stared at him. He recalled Zuko saying those words to him with a touch more confusion and apprehension. The years had changed them. Trials, tribulations, upsets, victories, and losses — molded them into who they were now. His hopes had been realized that they could be friends but it was in moments like this, that he realized how much was still between them. Standing upright, Aang pressed his hand flat to the wood and looked out to the horizon. 

His friends could understand many things about him. They shouldered the burden, the weight, and carried him as much as he tried to help them. But there were some things that simply couldn’t be put into words. Aang glanced up to the sky as he searched for an answer. 

“I think you’re forgetting that I’m —”

“The Avatar,” Zuko interjected, the indifference in his voice rattling Aang’s sense. Golden eyes, piercing in their blatant interest and concern, met his own. “Did you  _ want _ to be?”

Though Aang’s lips parted, no answer came forth. What question was that? He was meant to be the Avatar since birth. It was what he’d chosen to be and strove to be. Saving the world was necessary and he was a component in that. His state as the Avatar, a deciding factor in what the future would hold. Somehow though, he knew none of those answers would satisfy Zuko at all. The fire bender seemed to take his silence as answer enough and tilted his head away. Aang’s eyes shuttered and he stared down at the sea’s churning waters. 

“My uncle said destiny is what we choose. You didn’t  _ choose  _ to be the Avatar. You accepted it, and what came with it. That’s why this trip is necessary…”

A heavy weight settled on Aang’s shoulder and he glanced up in time to see Zuko looking down at him. His eyes, rounded and half-lidded, reminded him almost of Iroh. A gentle squeeze to his shoulder preluding words that pierced Aang’s heart. 

“You have to figure out what it means to be Aang.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all!
> 
> This was a work I had stashed away for a little while and kept forgetting to post up. I wasn't sure what the overall plot was but I remember leaving a tweet with dialogue between Zuko and Aang that I incorporated into this. So basically, this was just a think piece on the two of them and Aang getting a little closure that it's okay to be him. That he doesn't have to be the Avatar all the time. But since it's such a huge part of his identity, I don't think he really realizes that he's somewhat shafting who he is sometimes. Especially post-canon when he's thrust into the political scene.
> 
> Anyway, thank you so much for reading! If you'd like to check out my original work, find me on Tapas under **unlockthelore**! You can also find me on Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, and Pillowfort!
> 
> See you later!


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